During assembly or maintenance of various assemblies or constructions in various industries, it is desirable to prevent the introduction of debris into one or more areas to prevent damage to various objects or prevent safety hazards. Foreign material exclusion is of particular concern in the field of power generation and supply, whether nuclear, hydro or fossil fueled in order to prevent or reduce power shortages and outages, as well as increase nuclear safety.
While undergoing maintenance or assembly, small parts, screws, bolts, or other foreign objects can fall into crevices and openings. If not prevented, retrieved or noticed, such parts can have the potential to destroy or at least damage a particular unit and produce varying consequences, potentially catastrophic.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,506,014 relates to a device which can be utilized to temporarily seal substantially any opening on a turbine which is being assembled or repaired. The foreign material exclusion device advantageously maintains fail-safe integrity of desired portions of a turbine. Protection of the sensitive areas of a turbine prevents possible hazardous malfunctions or explosions of a turbine. The foreign material exclusion device is substantially elastic or resilient and can be compressed to fit into a desired opening and can be re-expanded to provide a snug fit about an opening.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,824,356 relates to a device which can be utilized to temporarily seal substantially any opening on a turbine which is being assembled or repaired. The foreign material exclusion device includes a main body, preferably formed from a foamed polymer or rubber. The foreign material exclusion device is substantially elastic or resilient and can be compressed to fit into a desired opening and can be re-expanded to provide a snug fit about an opening. An extraction member is connected to the main body and is preferably utilized to remove the device from a portion of a cavity of a turbine.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,533,698 relates to a foreign material exclusion device which is adapted to be utilized in tubes, pipes, or the like to prevent entry of debris into a potentially sensitive area of an assembly, such as a turbine assembly utilized in a power plant. In one embodiment, the device is adapted to be connected to a non-moving portion of a rotary milling tool, such as the collet, before a milling operation to prevent milling debris from entering a sensitive portion of a tube or pipe. In a further embodiment, each device of the invention includes a unique identifier or identification element, such as a machine readable bar code or RFID (radio frequency identification) tag, to insure all devices utilized for a particular job are accounted for.
Inflatable pipe plugs are also known in the art, wherein the plug includes an inflatable/deflatable bladder including one or more gas inlets and/or outlets. The plugs are generally inserted into a construction in a deflated or semi-inflated state at a desired location and then inflated to form a seal until after a desired operation is performed on the construction.
Still other tube plugs are known in the art that have a resilient body located within a cover, wherein the outer surface of the cover or an outer part of the cover can be connected to a device such as a rope or line that can be used to pull the tube plug from a construction, generally after the tube plug completes its function.